Here’s pair of Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses and Neural Band in the Sand color.
Kerry Wan/ZDNET
Meta officially unveiled its first AI smart glasses with a built-in screen, the Meta Ray-Ban Display, at Meta Connect 2025. The company also revealed that the glasses will be available to purchase starting on September 30. However, if you want to buy a pair of the $799 smart glasses, you can’t just pre-order them online.
Instead, you’ll have to book a demo at one of Meta’s retail partners, such as Best Buy, LensCrafters, Sunglass Hut, or Ray-Ban stores. And not every store will be offering demos of Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses at launch. So you have to check the scheduling tool to find a store near you and then see what appointments they have available. The LensCrafters site says that appointments take 20 minutes.
Also: I used the Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses, and they offer 2 breakthroughs to take us beyond smartphones
If you were hoping to purchase a pair on launch day, you may already be out of luck.
When I checked for demos in my area — where there are multiple Best Buy, Sunglass Hut, and LensCrafter retail stores — there was only one Best Buy offering demos and the earliest timeslot available to book was October 11. When I typed in various zip codes in New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, there were a lot more stores offering demos but the earliest open slot I found was October 8. The vast majority of the available time slots were in mid to late October. Some stores are already booking into November.
When you book a slot, it says, “You’ll be guided through a hands-on demo” and “Associates will help you find the right style.” To secure your slot, you also have to click an acknowledgement that says, “I understand that if I need prescription lenses, I must know my prescription details or wear my contact lenses to properly experience the demo. Demo glasses have a prescription range of -4.00 to +4.00 total power, single vision only. Availability may vary.”
The Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses come with the Neural Band and a folding case for $799.
Jason Hiner/ZDNET
Only those who get the demo will be able to purchase the glasses. This is likely one way that Meta is dealing with the constrained supply of its next-generation product, which integrates several breakthrough technologies, including a monocular LCOS display and an EMG wristband for neural input. Supply chain analyst Ming Chi Kuo has stated that Meta only plans to manufacture 150,000-200,000 units of the glasses over the next two years.
Also: Meta Connect 2025 live updates: Reactions to Ray-Ban Display, Oakley Vanguard glasses, more
The day after the official announcement of the Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses, Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth did a Q&A on Instagram, explaining why Meta is taking this approach to sales of its new flagship glasses at launch.
“We decided to put the [Meta Ray-Ban] Display on sale in retail stores first — and people are setting up demos,” said Bosworth. “A thing that happens with tech products is that they get purchased by people who just want to try them out [and then return them]. And we wanted to make sure that they’re [bought by] … people who really wanted them. But it’s just a temporary thing.”
Bosworth added, “Of course, over time, we plan to have them available online through meta.com and other retailers.”
It makes sense that Meta doesn’t want to have a large number of returns of a product that is difficult to manufacture and in such short supply at launch. Meta does a brisk business in refurbished units of the classic Meta Ray-Bans, which ZDNET has recommended as a great way to pick up a pair of the smart glasses at a discount. But refurbishing the Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses with their expensive components and more complex technology could be a much bigger challenge while the product is first coming to market.
Aside from the booking challenge, ZDNET recommends that most people who are interested in the Meta Ray-Ban Display book a demo to get a look at the technology. However, if you want to purchase a pair of smart glasses, then go with the newly updated Meta Ray-Bans Gen 2, Meta Oakley HSTN, or Meta Oakley Vanguard to get started in the ecosystem and see where smart glasses can fit into your work and lifestyle.